Smith v. State

The trial court did not err in failing to charge on the lesser included offense to aggravated sexual battery or child molestation as the evidence supported the indicted crimes or no crimes at all.

Thank you for sharing!

Your article was successfully shared with the contacts you provided.

A jury found Royal Clifford Smith guilty of aggravated sexual battery, criminal attempt to commit child molestation, and two counts of child molestation. Smith appeals, challenging the sufficiency of the evidence. He also argues that the trial court erred in failing to charge the jury on sexual battery as a lesser included offense of aggravated sexual battery and child molestation. Finally, he challenges the trial court’s jury instruction regarding responsibility for sentencing. We find the evidence sufficient. We also conclude that the evidence did not support an instruction on sexual battery and that the trial court properly charged the jury on responsibility for sentencing. Accordingly, we affirm. 1. On appeal from a criminal conviction, the defendant no longer enjoys a presumption of innocence, and the evidence must be viewed favorably to the jury’s verdict. See Duvall v. State , 273 Ga. App. 143 1 614 SE2d 234 2005. We do not weigh the evidence or resolve issues of witness credibility, but merely determine whether the jury was authorized to find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. See id.

So viewed, the evidence shows that in 2005, a middle school student noticed that her best friend, 12-year-old L. G., was acting strangely, withdrawing from people and crying at school. The friend asked L. G. what was wrong, and L. G. confided that one of her relatives had touched her breasts and vaginal area. Concerned by the outcry, the friend took L. G. to the school counselor. The counselor spoke with L. G., who reported that Smith, her aunt’s live-in boyfriend, had touched her breasts and put his hand down her pants. The counselor called the police.

Smith v. State

The trial court did not err in failing to charge on the lesser included offense to aggravated sexual battery or child molestation as the evidence supported the indicted crimes or no crimes at all.

Share with Email

Thank you for sharing!

Trending Stories

More From ALM

Subscribe to Daily Report